David Hamilton Koch (born David Hamilton Koch, born May 3, 1940, Wichita, Kansas, USA) is an American businessman and engineer, a billionaire. As of March 2017, he was number eight on the list of the richest people in the world according to Forbes with a fortune of $48.3 billion.
Place of Birth. Education. Born May 3, 1940 in Wichita, Kansas, USA, the son of Fred Koch, founder of Koch Industries. In addition to Charles, he has two more brothers - Frederick and William. He is now co-owner and executive vice president of Koch Industries.
David received a technological education, became a master of chemical technology. He was very fond of basketball, but he was not expecting a sports career.
Business. So, at the age of 30, he began working at Koch Industries, and nine years later he already received the position of president of Koch Engineering. The company developed peacefully thanks to the efforts of the brothers, but after the death of their father, a real crisis ensued in the family. Two brothers Bill and Frederick actively protested that Charles was trying to take all the management of the family business into his own hands. In 1980, they made an attempt to change something, but then David stood up for Charles, and the two of them managed to buy out the shares of their brothers, as well as other shareholders, three years later, paying $ 1.3 billion for them. It was a truly astronomical amount, but this deal was the first on account of the victories of Charles and David.
From the very beginning, the brothers actively undertook to expand the boundaries of their company. If earlier Koch Industries was traditionally associated with the energy sector, now the company positions its activities as turning raw materials into valuable products. The brothers invest in the oil refining, fertilizer, polymer, fiber, timber, and consumer goods industries.
The brothers actively participate in political life, finance political actions, specific political figures, and support conservative mass demonstrations. Because of this, they have been criticized more than once that in this way they protect the interests of their business. After all, such a huge production, like that of Koch Industries, pollutes the environment a lot. Kohey has invested millions of dollars in research designed to refute the theory that humanity is causing global warming through its activities. David Koch is a financial supporter of the research and education programs at the Humanities Research Institute at George Mason University. The fortune of the brothers David and Charles Koch is estimated at a total of approximately $ 96.6 billion. There are only three businessmen in America who are richer than them - this is Bill Gates, Warren Buffett and Larry Ellison. The brothers' business success story is inextricably linked to Koch Industries, which they develop together.
The reinvestment of the company's income reaches 90%, every year they invest huge amounts of money in their business, and in 2012 the company's revenue was about $115 billion.
Political views. Koch is an influential libertarian. In 1980, he was the Libertarian Party's vice presidential candidate and financed the election campaign. He is the founder of the conservative political group Citizens for a Sound Economy. He and his brother Charles are sponsors of various political advocacy groups and political campaigns, almost entirely Republican. In the 1980 presidential election, he ran for vice president with the Libertarian Party.
Philanthropist. Koch founded the David H. Koch Charitable Foundation. Since 2006, Koch has been ranked among the top 50 philanthropists in the world by The Chronicle of Philanthropy. In 1992, Koch was diagnosed with prostate cancer. He underwent radiation therapy, surgery and hormone therapy, but the cancer returned every time. Koch said he believes his experience with cancer motivated him to fund medical research. Between 1998 and 2012, Koch contributed at least $395 million to medical research and institutions.
Death. David Koch died August 23, 2019 at the age of 79 years.
08/23/2019